Additional National Prayer Needs
Pray for our Military
According to an announcement by Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, all active-duty U.S. military personnel will soon need to be vaccinated against the coronavirus. The new policy will cover roughly 1.3 million people.
The U.S. military is growing increasingly concerned with space weapons meant to target U.S. satellites. According to U.S. Space Force General John Raymond, electronic jamming devices designed to interfere with GPS signals are especially worrisome. He told the House Appropriations Committee’s defense subcommittee that the threat is “real and concerning.”
Pray for the health, safety, well-being, and morale of America’s military forces.
Pray for AMERICA’S FREEDOMS
“There’s nothing more authoritarian” than a no-fly list for unvaccinated people, Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky said. A former Department of Homeland Security official had stated that “vaccinated people should no longer carry the burden for unvaccinated people..” when traveling.
Pray for U.S. legislators and other governing officials to have discernment regarding the freedom Americans should have to determine whether or not to be inoculated against COVID.
Pray for AMERICA’S FOREIGN RELATIONS
The UN envoy to Afghanistan told the UN Security Council that the war in Afghanistan has entered a new, deadlier, and more destructive phase. Taliban fighters reportedly captured their first provincial capital since U.S. and NATO troops began pulling out of Afghanistan. The city of Zaranj in the southern Nunroz province is considered a major gain by the militants, indicating they have control of nearly half of that nation. The Afghan air force is working to contain them but there is limited U.S. air support.
The U. S. State Department approved the potential sale of 40 Howitzer artillery systems to Taiwan in a deal valued at up to $750 million, according to the Pentagon. This comes after arms sales last year that included drones and coastal missile defenses meant to upgrade the island’s capabilities and discourage a Chinese invasion. The Pentagon said the package includes the howitzers, precision guidance kits for munitions, training, ground stations, and upgrades for Taiwan’s previous generation of howitzers.
Pray for members of the administration and those in the Pentagon making decisions regarding the advance of the Taliban in Afghanistan and the defense of Taiwan.
Pray For AMERICA’S HEALTH AND WELL-BEING
The executive director of the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons said physicians largely agree there is no place for woke terminology in healthcare. The biological reality of sex cannot be viewed as a so-called “social construct” when a patient’s life is at stake. “Science depends on telling the truth, which depends on proper use of language,” he said. “Patients can be seriously harmed if treated based on incorrect information.”
Pray for U.S. healthcare officials as cultural preferences pose a risk of compromising American medical care.
Pray for AMERICA’S RELATIONSHIP WITH ISRAEL
At least two rockets launched from Lebanon struck Israel, which responded with several rounds of artillery fire amid heightened regional tensions over an alleged Iranian attack on an oil tanker in the Gulf of Oman a week ago. There were no casualties on the Israeli side of the rocket attack which struck a hilly frontier area, igniting a brush fire. Hezbollah has taken responsibility for the attack.
Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz warned diplomats representing members of the UN Security Council that Iran could gain the materials needed to create a functioning nuclear weapon in about 10 weeks. “Iran has violated all the guidelines in the JCPOA [Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action] and is only around 10 weeks away from acquiring weapons-grade materials necessary for nuclear weapons,” he warned. He added, “It is time to act. The world must apply economic sanctions and take operative action against the Iran Revolutionary Guard Corps” over its targeting of shipping tankers and other vessels.
Pray for Israel’s leaders and diplomatic allies to be wise in responding to the increased hostilities by Iran and its proxies in the region.
Pray for AMERICA’S ECONOMY
In July, companies in the U.S. added fewer jobs than expected, indicating persistent hiring obstacles despite broader improvement in the economy.
Job numbers for the first week of August exceeded expectations as pandemic-related economic assistance programs ended in some areas. President Biden cheered the news but expressed caution as well. “We got a lot of hard work left to be done, both to beat the Delta variant and to continue our advance of economic recovery,” he said. He then reiterated the importance of people receiving the COVID inoculation.
Pray for officials who are evaluating the impact the coronavirus and its variants are having on the economies of America and the world.
Pray for Justice in America
Senator Ron Johnson of Wisconsin continues to seek answers from Attorney General Merrick Garland and the Department of Justice about the treatment of January 6 protesters at the Capitol. He expressed concerns regarding “the unequal administration, application of justice and the law.” He continued, “they’re not administering justice equally in this country and that should concern every American.”
Pray for the federal law enforcement agencies to uphold the law and administer justice with equality.
Pray for Goodness in America
As the 2020 summer Olympics came to a close, there are athletes representing their countries in Tokyo who continued to thank God for enabling them to achieve athletic success on the international stage. Several American athletes credited God for their athletic achievements, whether it was breaking world records or simply the chance to compete. Athletes from other countries have also cast their praises on their Lord and Savior. Entire teams have even acknowledged their faith and dependence on God, giving Him thanks, and the list continues to grow.
Pray with gratitude for the testimonies of athletes who are not afraid to acknowledge Jesus Christ and their dependence upon the Lord. Pray for their influence to touch many in America and abroad.
Pray for America’s Media
Ratings for coverage of the Tokyo Olympics are down 40 percent from the 2016 summer games and more than 50 percent from 2012. Some question whether the “spirit” of the Olympics has departed, particularly as some of the athletes politicized their wins or losses with indications of not being proud to represent the U.S. However, the decline in television viewers does not reflect the people who watched online and via streaming platforms, where advertising was less. NBC is giving advertisers who bought airtime extra commercials because of the overwhelming low ratings.
Pray for members of the news media to strive to present the facts of events in a neutral manner.
Pray for America’s Education
The Rhode Island branch of a major teachers’ union is suing to block a school district from fulfilling a mother’s public records requests, citing the sheer volume of requests and concerns about teacher privacy. The mom says she “wants more answers” on critical race theory in her child’s district.
Pray for the parents across the country who are standing up for appropriate education for their children.
Pray for America’s Technology
Artificial intelligence is utilized by firefighters to battle the wildfire blazes. Data analytics and statistical models predict how fires spread, which aids decisions on where firefighters are deployed and where they are most needed. With advanced spatial analytics, they can plan where to engage a fire before it breaks out. It also helps managers and communities plan control lines and evacuation routes in advance.
Give thanks for the ways in which advanced technology is being used to help safeguard American people and property from the dangers of wildfires.
Pray for Needs Across the States
The South Dakota Commission on Child Support will be conducting public hearings over the next three months as it considers changes reflecting adjustments in the costs of raising children and other related issues and potential changes to child support law in the state.
Virginia legislators are taking up a compromise plan for spending $4.3 billion in federal coronavirus relief after a conference committee reconciled budgets that were approved last week by the House of Delegates and the Senate. The plan would spend most of Virginia’s share of the American Rescue Plan funding on initiatives aimed at helping small businesses, improving air quality in public schools, bolstering mental health and substance abuse treatment, increasing broadband access, and replenishing the state’s unemployment trust fund.
Pray that state legislators and agency leaders would benefit their communities and economies with their financial management and the crafting of laws.
Pray for America’s Faith Community
”The past several months have caused many of us to reevaluate our priorities, beliefs, attitudes, and desires for the future. As we have faced a horrific global pandemic, social unrest, and divisive politics, we have realized that our actions in this generation have consequences for the next—for better or worse. As the psalmist writes, ‘God will come to those who are generous and lend freely, who conduct their affairs with justice. Surely the righteous will never be shaken; they will be remembered forever’ (Psalm 112:5-6). … Our children will walk upon the ruins of what we bring down in our generation. The battles we are currently fighting, internally and externally, become the stepping stones to thriving for future generations.” – Reverend Samuel Rodriguez, President, National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference, July 2021
